Deadline: 4-Oct-23
Apply now for Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) follow on funding (FoF) to bridge the gap between bioscience research and achieving economic and societal benefit.
BBSRC is committed to achieving equality of opportunity for all funding applicants. They encourage applications from a diverse range of researchers.
They support people to work in a way that suits their personal circumstances. This includes:
- career breaks
- support for people with caring responsibilities
- flexible working
- alternative working patterns
Aim
- The aim of the follow-on fund (FoF) is to help researchers maximise the commercial, economic, and societal benefits of their research.
Scope
- The FoF is designed to enable researchers, with a sound understanding of the market opportunity of their intellectual assets, to execute a defined programme of work that has clear objectives.
- Projects considered through this programme must:
- draw on current or previous BBSRC supported research (or other type of BBSRC research investment), or both
- enable research outputs to be further developed into practical application to deliver benefit and impact
- They support both early-stage projects aimed at de-risking innovative ideas and later-stage projects that encompass significant technical milestones.
- It is recognised that smaller scale, in particular early-stage, projects may not require the full word count allowance for each application section.
- FoF projects must seek to deliver demonstrable benefit to the UK. However, it is recognised that the outcomes of some projects may also provide benefits to, or operate within, international markets.
- Projects previously funded through the Global Challenges Research Fund and Newton Fund funding opportunities would be considered eligible for FoF. However, they must ensure they clearly articulate how they will deliver social and economic impact within the UK.
- They conduct reviews of applications to ensure their alignment with the designated scope and retains the authority to reject applications considered out of scope before assessment by the FoF committee.
Funding Information
- The full economic cost (FEC) of your project can be up to £800,000.
- They will fund 80% of the FEC.
Duration
- The duration of this award is two years.
What they will fund?
- FoF grant applications must demonstrate that the proposed work programme:
- is based on a sound understanding of the market need and opportunity that its product, service or technology aims to satisfy
- is robust and designed to optimise the commercial, economic, and societal benefit derived from the grant
- has a substantial link to the previous research funding
What they will not fund?
- Applications to FoF should have a primary focus on the translation of research or knowledge, or both, making the following ineligible:
- projects focused solely on delivering training
- new research or extending an existing research grant
- applied or contract research conducted on behalf of commercial organisations
- applications outside of the remit
- supporting the direct costs associated with applying for Intellectual property (IP) protection, for example patent filing
Eligibility Criteria
- Projects considered through this programme must have a direct link to current or previous BBSRC-supported funding.
- A project lead is the individual who takes responsibility for the intellectual leadership of the translation project and its project management. They will be the main contact for the proposal and must be:
- based at a UK research organisation eligible for BBSRC funding, which will be responsible for submitting the grant application to UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)
- resident in the UK for at least 183 days in a tax year
- hold a lecturer or lecturer-equivalent position at a UK higher education institution, research council institute or a UKRI-approved independent research organisation
- employed at the submitting research organisation at lecturer level, or equivalent, or due to move to the organisation before the start date of the grant
- if not employed, you must have an agreement that the research will be conducted at the submitting research organisation, as if you were an employee at lecturer level, or equivalent.
- Co-applicants must be employed at an eligible organisation and meet the same employment criteria.
For more information, visit Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).